A Million in One
by PeppermintPatty09
Summary: "Every ending is a new beginning." Written for Faberry Week. Day 1: Reunion
1. Chapter 1

Title: A Million in One

Chapters: 1 of 5

Rating: K

Fandom: Glee

Pairings/Characters: OC, Leroy, Quinn/Rachel

Genre: Romance, Family and Angst

Summary: "Every ending is a new beginning."

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot belong to the respective author. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: If I didn't mention it before, this is unbeta. All mistakes are mine. Anyone interested in betaing for me, please PM me.

**A Million in One**

"Is your mommy sick, too?" A tiny, sorrowful voice said, starling her from her thoughts.

Quickly wiping away her tears, Rachel turned towards the voice and what she found were the brightest green eyes staring back at her that belong to a little girl. Putting on a brave face, Rachel smiled. "No, but my daddy is sick," she said, her voice scratchy from the non-stop crying she had done since her daddy told her the news three months ago.

The little girl sighed, wiping her runny nose on her pink long-sleeved shirt. It was then Rachel noticed her swollen red-rimmed eyes, red nose and damp cheeks. "My mommy is sick. She said her heart is sick. What's wrong with your daddy?"

"My daddy's lungs are sick," she explained, handing the little girl some tissue that she seemed to have an endless supply of nowadays.

"Oh," the girl sighed. "I'm sorry."

"Me, too," Rachel whispered.

"Aster," a voice clogged with tears called out.

The little girl turned towards a woman Rachel thought looked familiar but couldn't place where she saw her before. The woman looked like she was in her mid to late forties or early fifties with light blonde hair that was pulled into a bun, blue eyes that had purple bags under them and clothes wrinkled and unkempt. Her posture exhausted, defeated and sadness.

"Coming, grandma," Aster called out. "I need to go. We're leaving back home so I could get some rest, eat and go to school," Aster said, probably repeating what has been spoken to her so many times.

Rachel nodded, but didn't further acknowledge the girl. She watched the young girl – Aster – grasp the older woman's hand tightly and walk down the hall. Aster's body seemingly shrinking in itself with each step she took towards the exit. It was almost as if she was preventing herself from leaving. Rachel didn't know anyone who would want to stay in this godforsaken place. Hearing the_ whoosh_ of the automatic doors opening. Rachel thought about why she was in the empty waiting room, sobbing.

Cancer. Stage Four. Spreading. Incurable. Days. Death. Sorry. Daddy.

Rachel folded in herself and let out her mournful sobs.

* * *

"Would you like a cup of coffee?"

Despite herself, Rachel found herself smiling. "Aren't you a little young to be drinking coffee? What are you six, seven?"

"Nine," Aster corrected.

"You're still a little young to be drinking coffee, but if you're offering, I'm accepting."

Aster grinned, then turned with a flourished and made her way to a small nook table that held three coffee pots labeled, Dark, Medium and Decaf. Rachel watched in amusement as Aster poured two cups, opened four packets of sugar, pouring two into each Styrofoam cup and grabbed two stirring sticks. Rachel accepted the cup, gratefully. It may have tasted like tar but it got the job done.

"Yuck!" Aster exclaimed. "Blah…that's nasty."

Rachel laughed. "It's an acquired taste." She took a sip of her own. Shit, but got the job done. "I take it you've never had coffee before?"

"Nah…but my mommy loves it. I made it just the way she like it, too." Aster's face turned somber at the thought of her mom, and Rachel wanted to comfort her but refrained.

"My daddy liked it, also," she offered. "Three teaspoons of sugar and lots of creamer, is the way he liked it. It turned out to be more of a dessert than anything. He's always had a sweet tooth…" Rachel stopped, suddenly aware that she was mentioning her daddy in the past-tense. Almost as if he was… "I gotta go," she said quickly.

Rachel didn't wait around to hear Aster's response before she hopped off her chair, and ran to her daddy's room. She needed to see her daddy.

* * *

Rachel softly closed her dad's door. He had just fallen asleep after a round of radiation, and she was looking forward to some time by herself.

At twenty-eight, Rachel Barbara Berry was at the height of her career. She had won one Tony for her lead role in Funny Girl, won an Emmy for a TV movie that played on HBO about a married woman, Emily Cooper, finding out her husband of ten years is transgender and how it affects their children and family. The role had also won her a Golden Globe and SAG award.

Three months ago while relaxing with Skimbleshanks, her beloved orange tabby, and munching on some plain vegan yogurt with fruit, her private cell rang. The only ones with the number are family and friends.

Her world fell apart answering that one call from her daddy's colleagues and longtime friend, telling her that her daddy had been found in the bathroom throwing up blood and had been rushed to Lima's General.

In a frantic daze, she had called her assistant to set up the first flight out to Lima and set Skimbleshanks in with the kennel. Clothes and toiletries were able to be brought later.

Two hours, fifteen minutes and thirty-four seconds later, she arrived at Lima General, frantic, worried and in need of answers. She had learned from the doctor on her daddy's case that he had fell unconscious on the way to the hospital, and they were doing a full work of test on him.

It was three hours later that she was able to see her daddy. When she entered the room she found her daddy and the doctor talking quietly to one another.

"Lung cancer," Rachel breathed. "He…He doesn't even smoke."

"Lung cancer affects non-smokers, too," the doctor explained gently. "After multiple tests and biopsies we concluded your dad has stage four lung cancer. We found cancer tumors on both lungs and it has spread to his brain and nodes. Surgery is out of the question, but we can do an invasive chemo and radiation treatment. I'm sorry but the prognosis isn't good."

Rachel's breath hitched, and she choked back a sob.

"Rachel," Leroy rasped, reaching blindingly for Rachel's hand.

"Daddy," Rachel uttered softly, her lips trembling and hands shaking when she grasped her daddy's hand with both of her hands. She looked closely at him and noticed how much weight he had lost since the last time she visited on Thanksgiving, the bags under his eyes and the tired looked that he seemed to always wear. It had looked like he aged ten years.

"Don't cry, my little starlet," Leroy whispered, wiping away Rachel's damp cheeks. "It's going to be okay." Leroy smiled but it didn't reach his eyes. Rachel noticed a little bit of the light had gone out.

Rachel turned towards the doctor. "Tell me what we have to do to save my dad," she said.

That night Rachel learned about chemo, radiations and hospitals. The following morning she and her daddy were being airlifted to John Hopkins. It was one of the best hospitals in the US with the best medical treatment plan available. She would do whatever to never see the light leave her daddy's eyes.

* * *

Stepping into her waiting elevator, Rachel reached to press the main floor button when a tiny, recognizable voice stopped her. "Hold the elevator," Aster said.

Rachel's hand shot out, halting the metal doors from closing. Aster skidded in breathlessly. When Aster looked up a smile bloomed on her face.

"Hey," Aster said, stepping closer to Rachel. "Where you'd run off to yesterday? When I told my mommy she said you'd probably had to take a shit."

Unable to stop herself, Rachel found herself laughing. The girl was blunt, crass, funny and sweet. Aster reminded her of Santana. "God," Rachel exhaled. "I have no right to laugh when my daddy can't even laugh without tiring himself out."

Aster tilted her head. "My mommy said you should at least laugh once a day. I don't think your daddy will be mad at you for laughing."

Rachel smiled. "I don't think he will, too."

The elevator dinged, announcing their arrival at the main floor. Rachel and Aster stepped out.

"So, where you headed to?" Rachel asked.

"I'm on the hunt for some ice cream," Aster answered. "My mommy said since she can't have any I have to have double."

"Do you mind the company? Ice cream sounds pretty great to me, right now."

They entered the cafeteria. "You buyin'? I mean, I did buy you the coffee."

Rachel rustled Aster's red-hair. "Yeah, kid, I'll buy."

"So, what's your name? When I talk about you to mommy, I call you 'the lady'." Aster said licking around her double scoop chocolate cone.

Rachel licked the strawberry and banana sorbet of her spoon then introduced herself. "Rachel Berry."

Aster nodded. "Rachel Berry," she repeated. "Now, I can tell my mommy your name when I talk about you."

Rachel licked her lips. "You talk about me to your mom?"

Aster nodded, taking a large bite of her cone. "Yeah, I always tell her about my day. She says it make her heart feel better."

"Tell me about yourself, Aster. You live in Baltimore?"

Aster shook her head. "No, we moved here when my mommy's heart started to get sick. We're just living here until she gets better. We live in New York."

"Really," Rachel exclaimed. "Me too," she added, tossing her trash into the trash can on her right.

Aster sighed. "Do you miss home, too?"

Rachel smiled sadly "Yeah, I miss home. But I know being here is making my daddy better so I'm glad I'm here."

They continued to talk until the same older, familiar women called Aster name at the entrance of the cafeteria. This time when Aster left, she hugged Rachel. Rachel hugged her back, having to have forgotten what it felt like to be held.

* * *

"My mom wants to meet you," Aster told Rachel when she approached the actress two days later at their usual spot in the cafeteria.

"Me," Rachel squeaked.

"Yeah, she wants to meet you. Are you okay with that?"

Rachel bit her bottom lip, worrying it between her lips. "I – I guess so. You wanna go now?"

"Sure," Aster shrugged her tiny shoulders. "Unless you got somethin' to do."

"No, no." Rachel shook her head "It just – why does your mom want to meet me?"

"I told her you were my new best friend. Then she said she wanted to meet my new best friend and the person that made me smile and bought me ice cream."

_Oh dear_, Rachel thought. _Her mom probably thinks I'm some kid that's visiting their daddy in the hospital. When she finds out I'm a twenty-eight year old woman, she's going to call the cops and I'll be filed as a sex offender._

"Come on," Aster tugged at her hand, practically dragging her.

It wasn't long before they were at Aster mom's room. Rachel was surprised that it was only around the corner from her daddy's room.

Aster entered the room quietly while Rachel stood outside the door. "Mommy?"

From Rachel's vantage point, she could see that the woman had blonde hair and looked small in the large hospital bed.

"Where'd you go, my little butterfly?" the woman softly said.

"I went to find Rachel…just like you told me to," Aster answered.

"Rachel," the woman's voice hitched.

"Yeah, look." Aster turned to Rachel. "Come in, Rachel. My mommy wants to meet you."

Rachel took a few calming breathes before she walked into the room. What she saw stopped her in her tracks "Quinn?"

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

Title: A Million in One

Chapters: 2 of 5

Rating: K

Fandom: Glee

Pairings/Characters: OC, Leroy, Quinn/Rachel

Genre: Romance, Family and Angst

Summary: "Every ending is a new beginning."

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot belong to the respective author. I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

A/N: If I didn't mention it before, this is unbeta. All mistakes are mine. Anyone interested in betaing for me, please PM me.

**A Million in One**

Rachel felt a lump swell up in her throat and her eyes began to burn with unshed tears. "Quinn," Rachel whispered brokenly. Rachel's hand flew to her mouth; tears that were held dormant fell slowly down her cheeks, over her quivering jaw, down her convulsing neck and finally disappearing into her shirt.

Quinn gave Rachel a water smile. "Stop crying, Rachel Berry. You've shed enough tears because of me," Quinn gently scolded.

Rachel stepped closer into the sterile hospital room. Taking in Quinn, Rachel decided then and there, Quinn will always be the prettiest girl to her. Because even hooked on oxygen, wires connect to both arms and hands and a tube inserted into her chest and looking frail, Quinn is still beautiful. _Tragically beautiful_, Rachel thought.

"I see you've met my little butterfly," Quinn said, breaking the silence. Quinn's eyes shifted to her daughter for a moment before turning back to Rachel. "I'm _so_ glad you guys found each other. From the way she described you, I knew it was you."

"Quinn…how…why…," Rachel stuttered out. Her mind was a jumbled mess.

Quinn took in a shaky breath. "Two years ago, I was diagnosed with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. It basically means my heart is thickening and not able to pump blood easily. After my pacemaker and bypass surgery didn't work, I was put on the transplant list. Got this stupid beeper and everything," Quinn let out a bitter laugh. "Three weeks ago, I faint. My doctor told me Hopkins has the best Cardiac program and before I knew it I was being airlifted here."

"Oh, Quinn," Rachel cried, coming to Quinn's bedside. She sat on the chair beside Quinn's bed, grasping Quinn's cold, bony hand in hers. "How long is the transplant list?"

"Surprisingly, it's long. I was at the bottom, but after my fainting spell, they moved me to the top, but with my blood type being O negative it's difficult to find a match. It's not the rarest but it's rare enough to where it's a million in one chance for them to find a match. I have the universal blood type but can only receive from a fellow match."

Rachel sniffed. "My daddy's O negative, too. I know how you feel. Before he got sick, he used to store his own blood to make sure he had some in stock if he ever needed a transfusion or surgery."

"Did you guys know each other, or somethin'?" Aster's voice cut through. She's sitting at the foot of Quinn's bed, messing her mom's blanket cladded toes.

Quinn smiles lovingly at her daughter, her face softening and there is a light in her eyes that makes Rachel breathless and slightly…envious. She knows her father's love her and would do anything for her, but they have never looked at her like she their very air, blood…soul.

"Yeah, baby, we did," Quinn say with a hint of regret.

"Were you friends or girlfriends like you were with Megan?" Aster asked innocently.

Rachel's stunned eyes shifted from Aster and Quinn. She was surprised at the pink that decorated Quinn's cheek and at the jealousy that filled her veins. She wanted to know more about this woman who had made Quinn blush like that and who Aster knew.

"We were just friends, baby," Quinn answered.

Aster nodded. "Oh."

Quinn laughed, and tugged Aster's arm until her daughter fell beside her, wrapping her arm around Aster. Aster laid her head against her mom's chest and her tiny arm wrapped around Quinn's torso.

"I heard about your dad, Rachel. I'm so sorry," Quinn whispered.

"He has stage four lung cancer that has spread to his brain and lymph nodes," Rachel trailed off, unsure of what more to say. There really wasn't much to say. Her daddy was dying and the doctors couldn't do anything about it.

"How's your other dad doing?"

Rachel shrugged. "In my junior year at NYADA, he left daddy. No explanation, no apologies, no nothing. Just one night, he left. I've called and we tried to talk, but it turns into a shouting matching within seconds."

Quinn opened her mouth only to close it when Rachel's phone went off. Rachel stood up to fish it out, looking at the screen with a frown. "It's my daddy. I need to go." Rachel took a deep breath, her eyes locking on a sleeping Aster before moving to Quinn's whiskey colored eyes. "Can I stop by tomorrow?"

Quinn smiled in relief. "Yeah, I would like that. I don't get many visitors."

Rachel nodded and added another question to her list. "I'll see you tomorrow."

That night Rachel learned about cardiac transplants, life-spans, hearts and sudden cardiac death (SCD). She had just been reunited with Quinn but the thought of Quinn's heart giving out on her at any moment terrifies her. Rachel's thoughts stray to Aster and her heart breaks.

* * *

A week later, they're all gathered in Quinn's room playing cards. Rachel has a schedule. Mornings are spent with her daddy and in the afternoon while her daddy is in chemo or radiation, she spends it with Quinn and nights are spent between both – depending on who's awake.

Quinn placed a red colored nine card on top of its twin. "Uno," she shouted a little too loud. She looked mischievously at her last card – a wild card. She had this in the bag. Rachel had two more cards, Aster three, and her mom at six.

Rachel groaned and grabbed a card from the _draw_ pile. Not seeing it match, it move on over to Aster. Aster laid a yellow nine on top of Quinn's red nine. Quinn's mom, Judy, went next, placing a blue nine. Quinn smiled in triumph when she slammed her wild card down on top of her mom's blue nine.

Rachel, Aster and Judy all groaned and handed over their left over cards.

"That's ninety-four. And since I needed only fifty-seven to win…I won," Quinn gloated with a large smile. All afternoon they had been playing board and card games, and so far she had won every game.

Aster huffed. She was every bit as competitive as her mom. She climbed off the bed and put on her shoes. "Let's go get some ice cream, grandma. You're treating."

Judy laughed, standing. "Oh, I'm treating, you say." Judy gathered her trench coat and purse. "We'll see you later, girls. Would any of you like anything while I'm out?"

"No thank you, Judy. But thanks for the offer." Rachel gathered the cards on Quinn's bed, wrapping a rubber band around them and stuffing them into Quinn's bedside. Opening it, she noticed stacks of manila envelopes with some law office name stamp and Quinn's journal. She wondered what was in the envelope, and what Quinn's thoughts were.

"I'm good, mom. Thanks," Quinn said.

"I know you're probably tired of hearing this but, how are you?" Rachel asked once Aster and Judy left the room.

"No better, no worse," Quinn replied. She reached out for her cup of water and took a sip. Above the rim of her cup, she could see Rachel biting her lip with a thoughtful expression etched on her face. "Go on, ask me. I know you want to." She knew what Rachel has wanted to ask her every time Aster was in the room with them, but refrained.

"Who's Aster's dad?" Rachel blurted out.

Quinn inhaled sharply, placing her now empty cup on her nightstand. "I had an affair with my married philosophy professor," Quinn admitted shamed written on her face. "I knew he was married, had a family, but I didn't care. He dotted on me, bought me expensive gifts, took me to five-star restaurants where I sat next to celebrities. I didn't even love him or felt any sort of attraction to him, I loved his attention."

Quinn took a deep breath. Lately, even long-winded speeches seemed to tire her out. "Five months into our affair, I found out I was eight weeks pregnant. As you can suspect, he didn't react well," Quinn gave Rachel a bitter smile. "He claimed I was out to ruin his marriage and his reputation. That I did it on purpose and that the baby probably wasn't even his. That night, I called my mom in tears, and I shamefully told her everything. I expected her to be disgusted, to disown me, but instead she told me, "We're keeping this one, Quinnie."

Quinn smiled through her tears. "Two days after calling her, my mom called me and told me she was in New Haven and to meet her at this address. I was surprised when I pulled up into front of a fairly large two-story family home. When I got there my mom greeted me with, _"Welcome to our new home, Quinnie."_ She told me she decided to move down to New Haven to help me raise the baby, so I wouldn't have to give up my education. She had bought the house because it was five minutes away from Yale and was prefect for us. Two years after I graduated from Yale, we moved to New York and decided to rent out the house."

"Why didn't you call any of us? Gleeks stick together." Rachel asked, extremely hurt that Quinn wouldn't call for help…_Wouldn't call me_.

Quinn scoffed. "We're not in high school, anymore. In high school we didn't even stick together. Can you honestly tell me you still talk to everyone in Glee?"

Rachel bit her lip. It was true. She hasn't heard from her fellow Glee members in about nine years. Kurt had briefly moved in with her, but two divas living under one room was too much. Kurt had moved out two weeks later. They had tried to keep in touch but life got in the way. Now, she had new friends that she considered family.

"Not even Santana and Brittany. They were your best friends."

"Santana and I didn't part on great terms that last time I saw her," Quinn grimaced, thinking about the slap Santana gave her on that Thanksgiving, "and I was never partially close to Brittany. If it wasn't for Santana, I never would have befriended Brittany. Anyways, Santana and I were never that great of friend to begin with. We were the kind of friends you had during high school, but forgot the moment you shook hands with the principal and get your diploma. Oh, you give out those empty promises to keep in touch but school, classwork, professors, new friends…life, soon gets it in the way. And before you know it, you find a full book of Metro passes that have never been used and expired."

Rachel gives Quinn a sad smile. "It's okay, Quinn. I'm not mad or upset about you not using the passes. It works both ways. I forgot about mine until I was moving out of my old apartment into a studio in the Upper East Side when I was a junior at NYADA."

"Good," Quinn said softly, her eyes dropping ever so lightly. "I always regretted not using me." Quinn shut her eyes, effectively silencing the room.

Rachel sat back contemplated of what she had just learned from Quinn. Was Quinn really here dealing with this awful illness by herself? She thought about herself, and how she was alone. Her friends from New York checked in periodically, offering love and support and words of love and sympathy, but they weren't there to hug her or to offer her their shoulder when she needed a good cry.

When Rachel looked up, she found Quinn asleep. Rachel sighed, standing. She tucked the blanket around Quinn, knowing Quinn got cold. Rachel looked around for a moment then she leaned over and gently placed a kiss on Quinn's forehead. "You're not alone, Quinn," she whispered before she walked out of the room.

* * *

"What are you doing, baby girl," Leroy croaked. He grabbed his cup full of melting ice chips, shaking some into her mouth.

Rachel glanced up from her phone. "What are you talking about, daddy?"

"Quinn. I'm asking what you are doing falling for Quinn."

"I'm not falling for Quinn, daddy," Rachel protested, placing her phone on his bedside table. "We're just friends."

"She's dying, baby," Leroy whispered, brokenly. "You're going to get your heart broken."

Rachel's hand flew to her…her heart. It hurt to even think about losing Quinn. Just has much as it hurt to think about losing her daddy.

"I see the way your eyes light up when she texts or calls you. You talk about her as if she's your breath, or sun."

"Me reasoning for living," Rachel said quietly.

Leroy smiled sadly at his daughter. "Your father will always be the love of my life, my soul-mate. But our time ended. Maybe your time with Quinn is now but your end is also near. Everything has an ending."

Rachel hunched over as reality hit her. Violent sobs shook her body, tightened in her chest and tore at her throat as she cried out her grief. She was going to lose Quinn. Quinn was dying. Her time with Quinn would be ending…forever.

Leroy reached for Rachel, pulling her small frame on the bed with him. Rachel's head fell on his strong chest as he held her close to him, stroking her hair. "It's going to be okay, baby. You'll see. It's going to be okay."

* * *

Whew...Thanks for the reviews, favorites and follows. I love all of them. I have the third part already written, the fourth halfway finished and the last chapter planned out. It's all coming together wonderfully. I'll be able to update when I'm off work - which is sometimes, if I'm lucky, once a week. I'm hoping it's either Thursday or Friday so look for part three then.

See you next time.


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